She Is Love
by Cupcake Angel
Summary: Chloe only has to spend one summer with her father before she can finally go off to college when she meets Derek. It wasn't love at first sight, but can one summer spent together change that? AU/AH Inspired by The Last Song novel.
1. Chapter 1 : The Reason

****DISCLAIMER: I do not own Darkest Powers ****that would be Kelley Armstrong! I don't own The Last Song either, that would be the awesome Nicholas Sparks!****

**A/N: ****So this is my first DP fiction. It was inspired by the Last Song but it will have a slightly different plot just so that I don't give everything away. And no, it was not the movie that inspired me. It was the amazing novel! Please R&R 'cause I love you!**

**Playlist: **

**Growing up – The Maine**

**Chapter 1**

_**Chloe **_

…

It had a beautiful forest. It was green and soft looking. Mossy, I guess you could call it. I have seen a lot of cities in the last couple of years and I've seen a lot of different climates. I liked this one though; it was all summer and no winter, maybe a month of fall at most. It was a huge plus for someone like me. Someone who liked the beach and the sun. I didn't like it for the warmth or the fact that I could get year-round tan; it was because no matter how dark your thoughts would get and how miserable everything would seem, you would look around yourself and things wouldn't seem so bad. And I like being able to see the upside of things. It has gotten really difficult to do so lately, though. That's why they sent me here, I'm sure of it. Well, that and for Peter's sake of course.

Peter got sent to my Dad almost straight away. They wouldn't let him stay with me and Aunt Lauren. And I could get why; he was too young to be away from both his parents. In the back off my head I always knew that I should have gone with him right away but you're not always thinking straight. I sure as hell wasn't. I convinced myself that if I just stayed with my Aunt Lauren for the summer I could go off to college and that would be the end of it. I would be free. But then I screwed up.

I'm not going to get into the specifics of the things that I did, but I'll tell you this much though… if I were to do it all again I would probably change a lot of things. But to name one; I would sure as hell think before dying a red highlights into my hair and getting my nose pierced. I kind of regret doing that.

Aunt Lauren was a great woman. She tried to be there for me. She really did. It wasn't her fault that she couldn't. I don't – can't – blame her for sending me away. I was a handful and she couldn't handle it. And I don't think that she knew what she was getting herself into, she had known me since I was born. She even helped raise me. She just didn't know how much I'd changed. She bought me clothes when I refused to buy them myself for the money that Dad sent me. She pretended not to hear me sneaking out of the house late at night. So you can't say that she didn't try.

But of course, I couldn't tell her that. Even now, sitting in the backseat of her bright blue Audi I couldn't utter a word. For once, I was truly at a loss. It would be too easy saying something rude or even vicious to her and it would be too hard to say something nice. Too hard to beg her to take me back to New York and swear that I would be better this time. It wouldn't be true and it wouldn't be fair. Not to either of us.

So I did what seemed the most logical at the time. I turned up the music on my iPod until I the music snaked its way into my brain and I couldn't think anymore.

I could feel Aunt Lauren watching me as I paced up the wooden steps that led to the front door. She hadn't even looked at me when she parked the car. She had only said one word. _Leave. _It was that simple. I had climbed out of the car and slammed the door shut behind me.

I glanced back at her and met her small eyes for a second before she looked away. I shook my head silently to myself and put my palm flat against the door. I sighed and knocked two times. I could hear the sound of crackling floorboards from inside and a muffled voice. It sounded vaguely like "Coming!".

The door opened and to me it seemed like slow-motion. I could see the back of Peter's head as he laughed at someone behind him and then his head turned to see who had knocked. Then his small face clouded with shock. "_Chloe?_" He asked squinting at me like it was hard to tell if it was really me. I suppose it had to be. I looked different. The last time he saw me my hair was still clean of dye, my nose didn't have a small diamond stud in it and I wasn't wearing black jeans and a tight black tee in the middle of July. Then he stepped outside, closing the door behind him. "Is that really you?"

I closed my eyes and managed a tight nod. I was so scared at that moment. I didn't want him to hate me. Then I felt something wrap around my waist. I opened my eyes and saw Peter hugging my waist, grinning up at me. "You don't hate me?" I asked, surprised.

He frowned. "I could never hate you. You're my sister." Then he hesitated. "Does Dad know that you're coming?"

"Yes, Peter," I said. "Of course he knows."

He nodded and then whispered. "He misses you, you know?"

His blue eyes that resembled my own in so many ways were wide and filled with hurt. I sighed and gave him a hug. "I know. But I don't know if I can forgive him."

"Can you try?" He asked, stepping away from me.

I opened my mouth to speak when the door opened revealing Dad. He looked different. His usually neat black hair was a tousled mess and his brown eyes were alive. "Chloe," he whispered hoarsely. "You look…" He awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "Different."

"Yeah," I muttered sarcastically.

We all stood in silence for a moment until Peter broke it. "Isn't Aunt Lauren going to come out of the car?"

"Go ask her," I suggested somewhat snottily and pushed past Dad through the door.

It was a small house, not really new or expensive but it was comfortable and homey. Just like Dad. And guess what. It was right beside the beach. _A beach house._ It was practically perfect. I hated it. I looked around the living room, it wasn't very neat but it wasn't messy either. I guess you could call it "lived in". I traced the wall with my pinkie as I walked over to the bookshelf. I saw a picture of me when I was about ten; I was holding a three year old Peters hand and grinning at the camera. As I thought back I could vaguely remember the day but not for the obvious reasons, it wasn't because I got my first bike or because I lost a tooth or something. It was the day before Dad walked out on us.

"Looking at old memories?"

I whirled around and saw Dad standing in the doorway. "Where's Peter?"

He frowned and glanced over his shoulder. "He's with Lauren."

I managed a quick nod, looking away from him. "How has he been?" I asked tightly.

Dad looked down at his feet, pained. "He misses her, he missed you, too."

"Yeah?" I snarled. "Well, he missed you when you were gone, too."

"Chloe-" he began but I cut him off.

"Don't. Just… don't," I warned as I passed him on my way out the door.

The sun was high in the sky as I walked down the unfamiliar beach right beneath Dad's house. The sand was beginning to fill my black Converse sneakers but I couldn't have cared less. My mind wasn't on what I was doing; it was more focused on why I was doing it. Why did Dad have to talk about her? He didn't have to bring her up, in fact he shouldn't have. Of course Peter misses her. Of course _I _miss her. I mean… what did he expect?

The further I walked the more apparent it became that this small town wasn't quite as small as I had anticipated. Teenagers crowded the beach, all different in a lot of ways, but they seemed have one thing in common; they were all giving me strange looks. I could see why, too. I was without a doubt the odd one out. I didn't have a tan, my makeup was dark and probably smudged by now and I didn't even care. I met a few of their rude stares with a cold glare that clearly said back off. I didn't want trouble but I wouldn't take any crap either.

There was a carnival in town, too. Right by the beach. I could see a Ferris wheel, a haunted house and a rollercoaster. Peter would surely want to go, maybe Dad would take him.

I bought a strawberry milkshake from a guy in a candy stand and then moved on. Suddenly, as I was walking I felt something crash into me. Then I was on the ground… and my milkshake was on _me. _I looked up to see a big dark haired guy on top of me. "Get off of me!" I screamed.

The guys green eyes widened with realization and he quickly stood up. He didn't even offer me a hand up. I wouldn't have taken it but it was the gesture that mattered. I pushed myself off the ground and looked down at my now milkshake covered t-shirt. I looked at him and really took him in. He had black hair styled in a casual way that made me wonder whether it was styled at all, fascinating emerald eyes and tan olive skin. He was wearing a white sleeveless tee and I could see that he had seriously toned arms. He wasn't really the hottest guy and he shot out some pretty nasty vibes. So, of course, that brought out the very best in me. Note that sarcasm.

"You should watch where your going," he said menacingly in a deep rumbling voice.

"What the hell, man? _You_ were the one who crashed into _me_! And, you made me spill my freaking milkshake all over my shirt." I could barely even hear the laughter coming from around us and I was too caught up in the argument to even care.

He glared at me. "Well, you should have noticed that we were in the middle of a game." He gestured a volleyball net behind him where some guys were standing all staring at us.

"Well I would apologize but I'm afraid that I would be lying," I said while scowling back at him.

A good-looking Asian boy came up from behind him. He had brown eyes and blonde hair. It was strange, but I swear, his hair almost looked natural. "Cool it, Derek." The boy said.

The big guy – Derek – snorted.

"I'm Simon," the Asian boy said offering me his hand to shake.

I looked at his hand for a second before meeting his gaze again. "So?"

He sheepishly retrieved his hand and stuffed it into the pocket of his khaki shorts. "I'm sorry about Derek. He's not good with, well – people."

I was surprised at how Simon could talk like Derek wasn't even standing there. What surprised me even more was how Derek didn't do anything about it.

"I'll pay for your shirt," he offered somewhat desperately.

"That's okay," I said. "_You _didn't do anything wrong," glanced over at Derek. "Just don't bother me again." I turned around and headed back towards the carnival I had seen some shirt stands when I was passing through earlier.

It turns out that the shirt stores I'd seen only sold the stupidest t-shirts I'd ever seen. I mean, who in the right mind would ever buy a shirt with Nemo on it? I would rather stay in the milkshake mess.

I was searching through a pile of clothes when a girl came up beside me. She had long messy dark hair and dark eyeliner. She wore a tight grey tank and ripped black jeans. She was the first girl I'd seen that didn't look like Malibu Barbie.

"I'm Rachelle," she introduced. "But my friends call me Rae."

"Nice to meet you Rae, I'm Chloe." I replied.

"I saw what happened back there," Rae said, glancing down at my shirt thoughtfully. "Come on, I know a place where you can find some better shirts." Then she grabbed my hand and began towing me away.

I let her pull me through the crowd and to a different stand. Rae was right; the shirts there were much better. I picked up a purple tee with logo for The Maine on it.

"That will be fifteen dollars," the girl who was working the stand said in an annoyingly perky voice.

I handed her a crumbled ten dollar bill and then a five. I pulled the shirt over my head not bothering to take off the black one first since the milkshake had dried hours ago.

"You're new here, right?" Rae asked later on when we were pacing around the carnival.

"Am I that obvious?"

Rae rolled her eyes. "We don't get a lot of newbie's around here."

"So?" I raised an eyebrow.

She laughed. "Word travels fast."

"Do you know who that guy was?" I asked. "The one who crashed into me earlier? I think his name was Derek or something."

"Yeah," Rae said. "I know about him and Simon, they're like stepbrothers or something, I'm not really sure. I'm more familiar with their bitch of a sister."

"Why? Who is she?"

"Her name is Tori Bae and I swear she's like evil incarnated or something!"

I chuckled. "She's really that bad?"

"Worse," Rae joined in with laughter. Rae was nice but there was something slightly off about her. Something wasn't quite normal. I shrugged it off, it was probably nothing.

"What time is it?" Rae suddenly asked.

I pulled my cell out of my pocket and checked the time. "Umm, it's a quarter past eight."

Rae grinned. "Awesome! You have to come and meet Liam!"

"Who's Liam?" I asked, following Rae.

"He's a friend," Rae said with a small smirk. "But I want him to be more, you know?" Then she gave me a pointed look. "So don't try to fool around with him."

"I wasn't planning on it." I said.

"If you say so," Rae said, eying me suspiciously.

I nodded. "I mean it."

Then she smiled and clapped her hands happily. "Great!"

I frowned, did she have mood swings, or what? "What does Liam do, exactly?"

"You'll see."

**A/N: This was truly fun to write. I think it could have been a lot better, let me know what you think. You know, if I should continue it and if I do, I'll probably write longer chapters since this was just a try-out! **

**Please REVIEW and maybe I'll give you an update soon!**

**Love, **

**Annabel**


	2. Chapter 2 : The Neglecting

****Disclaimer: I do not own DP or TLS! ****If I did Derek and Will would never NOT have their shirts off!****

**A/N: I would like to dedicate this chapter to my close friend E****mma Jane (who will probably hit me for calling her that) who's been really sick lately. She's in the hospital right now where doctors are like running tests on her and I know that she reads a lot on her laptop when she's there. Her Pen name is **_**Blonde Awesome M'Jane**_** and she has some really good Mortal Instruments Fan Fictions so please check them out and leave nice comments! **

**I would also like to thank everyone who reviewed! I think I replied to each and every one except the ones who were anonymous. So thank you all so much!**

**P.S. I know that Chloe is very OOC or "corrupted" as I think someone commented (which totally made me LOL), she will be different… **

**Stay away – The Honor Title**

**Chapter 2**

_**Derek**_

_..._

Do you ever feel like life sucks? And I don't mean that in the usual 'I'm depressed and lonely' kind of way. Definitely not. It's not that I don't _like_ my life. I am very grateful for everything that the Bae's have given me. I've even grown to love them over the years… and that even includes Tori. Sure, she can be a bitch but she's also my sister.

Simon and I are opposites. He likes having friends and girlfriends; being that guy that everybody wants to know. I, on the other hand, don't need other people to live. I have my family and that is enough for me. I don't need anything else. Actually, I pretty much reject new things. If you expect the worst you're never disappointed. A hard rule to live by and a hell of a lie.

So no, even though maybe my life doesn't _suck_ I just feel like I'm not really living it anymore. Like I'm just going through the motions. Like nothing has changed for so long and I'm just doing the same things over and over. I'm still the big ugly kid with attitude problems that everyone only puts up with because he's Simon's brother. I try to ignore it but I can see the looks that his friends give me filled with disgust, obvious distaste and sometimes even fear. I can see why you would be disgusted by the sight of me - people judge each other all the time – but something about that fear in their eyes just messes me up. It makes me feel like maybe there's really something _to _fear. And the sad part is that I know it's true.

Because even if I tried to expect the worst I was still shocked when the worst happened to me.

"Do I have to go?" I asked in what - to me - qualified as a pleading tone.

Simon rolled his eyes and bent over to tie the shoelaces of his Nike sneakers. "Come on man, there'll be lots of chicks down at the beach."

I gave him a doubtful look. I never cared about girls and girls sure as hell never cared about me. If they ever talked to me it was to get my brothers number or to tell me what a bitch my sister is, like I didn't already know that.

He groaned and straightened up. "You promised me you would be on my team for the Volleyball tournament, remember? And this is just practise anyways…"

"No I didn't." I replied. "_You_ asked me if I would be your partner and _I_ said no."

"Oh… well," he scratched the back of his head as he searched for some new excuse. "I will… stop stealing money from your safe if you do this for me?"

"What the hell?" I yelled. "You steal money from my safe?" It wouldn't be very surprising seeing how Simon always ran out of money buying new things or spending them on girls but, come on, there were limits to what he could do!

Simon's eyes widened with realization of what he had just said and he began blubbering like a fish. "U-um… N-no I'm n-not… that's not the point, okay?"

I rolled my eyes. "Fine."

"Fine?" Simon asked, stunned. "Like… you'll do it?"

I nodded. "Yeah, let me just go change and I'll be right out." I began walking towards my bedroom but stopped halfway out the door, looking back at Simon over my shoulder. "Oh… and Simon?"

"Yeah?" He asked, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion.

I smirked. "You _will_ replace all the money you stole."

It was hot outside with a slight comfortable breeze in the wind. It was the perfect day for volleyball. I liked the game. Well, I liked most sports but this was the one that Simon and I had in common. I wasn't stupid, I knew that if Simon had any other friends that played as well as me he would have gladly played with one of them but I was probably the best junior player in the area. And Simon wanted to win. Whether he wanted to win to impress girls or for the price money I had no idea but I was guessing that it was a little bit of both.

Two of the guys in Simon's gang, Matt and Tommy, were already at the volleyball net down at the beach when we arrived. They were both nice guys, not really loud or obnoxious like most of the people in town.

Matt and Tommy went through the official rules that would be used in the tournament with Simon before we started the game.

We were up 20-15 when Simon decided to pull a dumb-ass move. He was diving after the ball when he lost his balance and instead went straight towards me. As a reflex I quickly moved away only to knock myself into someone else.

I fell onto the ground with however it was locked securely beneath me. I barely even had the time to put my hands on the ground to stop me from squishing the person.

"Get the hell off of me!"

I looked down to see a girl. She had long tangled strawberry blonde hair with red streaks in it, a small diamond stud in her nose and the bluest eyes I'd ever seen. Then my eyes widened as I realized that I might not be moving fast enough. I quickly regained my posture and stood up. She pushed herself off the ground, standing tall – so to speak she was actually very short, especially in comparison to me – and stared at me for a second.

"You should watch where you're going," I said in a dark tone. It wasn't like I was trying to be mean. I was like this with everyone. _Clearly_, I thought, _that was not the way to go. _

Her eyes darkened into a scowl. "What the hell man?_You_ were the one who crashed into _me_! And, you made me spill my freaking milkshake all over my shirt." She shouted and I could hear some laughter coming from around us.

I glanced down on her shirt and she was right, there was a big stain of pink milkshake on it. "Well, you should have noticed that we were in the middle of a game." I flicked my wrist towards the net behind me.

She narrowed her eyes at me. "Well, I would apologize but I'm afraid that I would be lying."

"Cool it, Derek." I heard Simon say as he walked up next to me. Then he turned to the girl with his womanizing smile on his face. "I'm Simon," he stretched his hand out for her to shake.

She stared at his hand for a minute in obvious distaste. "So?" She asked in a neutral voice.

I swear to God that I saw Simon blush before pulling his hand back and awkwardly pushing it into the pocket of his shorts. "I'm sorry about Derek. He's not good with, well – people."

I inwardly rolled his eyes at how Simon talked like I wasn't even there. I was used to it. Especially around girls.

"I'll pay for your shirt," he offered, throwing his hands out.

The girl didn't say anything for a moment.

"That's okay," she then said dismissively, still glaring. "_You _didn't do anything wrong." A pointed stare at me. "Just don't bother me again."

She didn't even glance back at us as she hastily made her way into the crowd leading towards the carnival.

"Wow," I heard Simon breath. "I mean… she just – wow. She must be new here 'cause I am positive that I've never seen her before."

I rolled my eyes. "I thought you were dating that Diana girl?" I asked not really caring but wondering why he was staring after that angry girl when he had a girlfriend already.

"Her name is Deena and it's not official." He murmured absent mindedly still not moving his gaze.

I shook my head. "I'm pretty sure it's Diana, you dated Deena last month."

Simon's head snapped up and met my eyes for a second. "Oh. You're right."

I didn't keep track of Simon's girlfriends for most of the time; they were usually only around for a week or two so there wasn't much to keep track _of _but still. The only reason I remembered Deena was because she walked right up to me – in the middle of a crowded street – and yelled that my brother was a jerk… this was after he dumped her for _Diana _of course.

"I don't see why you would be interested in her anyways." I grunted. "She didn't seem very into you."

Simon sighed and rolled his eyes like I was an immature five year old who could not comprehend what he was saying. I mean, come on, I was the one going to Stanford. Not him. "Dude, you crashed into her and made her spill milkshake all over her shirt. You don't think that could have gotten her upset by any chance?"

I frowned. He had a point there.

Simon patted my shoulder in what was meant to be a patronizing gesture but since I've got a good measure of length over him I'd say he failed. "Face it. You know nothing about girls."

"So sue me," I muttered under my breath.

"Say what?" Simon asked, not catching my facial expression.

I groaned. Simon had the attention span of a retarded puppy.

"Come on guys!" Matt called tossing the volleyball to Simon. "Are we playing or what?

After winning three times out of four we called it a night. We would have won all of them if Simon hadn't had his head in the clouds or should I say _girl_. Whoever that chick was I seriously hope that they can get together and break up by the time we're in the tournament. It wasn't my idea to enter the competition but now that I was in it… I would make sure to win.

Simon had ditched me for some party at a friend's house which left me to walk home alone. I didn't really mind, walks were good to clear your head. And when you're me; your head is pretty much a constant mess.

I was walking by the pier when I heard him. Liam. I'm pretty sure that I did a double take just by the sound of that _creature's _voice. I mechanically turned my head towards where the sound had come from.

They were sitting on the beach around a small camp fire. Liam. He had his arm around that dark-haired girl – Rachel, I think – and he was chuckling. There were no words for what I thought about him. I couldn't say that I was fond of the girl either. You had to be a special kind of stupid to hang out with that scumbag. That's when I saw her; she came out of the shadows and sat down next to Rachel. It was the girl from earlier. Her blonde hair with the red streaks in it stirred in the wind, much resembling the fire in front of her.

I really looked at her this time. Eve though her nose was pierced, her jeans ripped and her hair died she didn't fit in there. There was insecurity in her eyes as she wrapped her arms around her knees, hugging them to her small body, almost as if she wished that she was somewhere else. It was a shame.

I told myself that it was a shame because Simon could never be with her now. He would never touch anyone from Liam's gang. He wasn't stupid. But a part of me – a very, very small part – said that maybe that wasn't the only reason.

**A/N: I'll leave you to ponder that… Please R&R, give me some opinions! *Puppy dog eyes* Leave a review!**

**Lot's of love**

**/Annabel**


	3. Chapter 3 : The Sea Turtles

****Disclaimer: I do not own DP or TLS if I did I wouldn't be writing this right now... I would be rolling around in my piles of money****

**A/N: Hiya, I'm sorry for the kind of slow update but I've been sick so I've been stuck watching Vampire Diaries re-runs all week. But I really wanted to write so here comes a whole new chapter. Remember I love all of you who review!**

**P.S. I know I said that this was inspired by the book but this chapter is mostly inspired by the movie. I know, I know! I really liked writing it but, you know, let me know.**

**Playlist:**

**Whatcha say (acoustic version) – Jason Derülo (Oh, how it fits for this chapter, kind of... love it so much!)**

**Chapter 3**

_**Chloe**_

...

"Chloe!" A harsh voice called right into my left ear. "Chloe, wake up!"

I grunted and pulled the covers over my ear mumbling something that vaguely sounded like "go away".

"Chloe," the voice repeated sounding irritated. "I'll push you off the bed." It warned.

I just groaned and rolled over, wanting to go further away from the voice.

There was a low giggle. "Don't say I didn't warn you..." And then suddenly there was a hard push against my side and I landed on the floor with a _thud! _

"What the he-" I paused, knowing better than to swear around Peter. "H-heck!" I rubbed my forehead with the palm of my hand. It really hurt.

"Ha ha!" Peter laughed, doubling over while clutching him stomach. "You should have listened to me!"

I untangled the sheets from my legs and threw them back onto the bed. "Well thank you for that, Pete." I sighed in discomfort as I pulled myself up, steadying myself against the headboard. "What time is it?"

"It's eight o'clock," he said cheerfully, grinning from ear to ear.

My mouth dropped. "In _the morning?_"

Peter rolled his eyes. "Yes, in the morning."

I glanced out the window and was met with a stunning shade of blue. It was so sunny outside. It looked like the perfect weather. "Is it warm outside?"

Peter shot me a look that said "are you stupid". He shook his head at my stupidity. "It's always warm outside. We live on. The. Beach!"

I wanted to note that not all beaches had this climate but decided against it. Instead I ruffled his hair and passed him to go the kitchen/living room area. I went to the front door, pausing with my hand on the doorknob when Peter said. "You're not going outside looking like _that _are you?"

I looked down at the gray sweats and purple tank top I had slept in. "I'm only gonna go outside on the porch."

"Huh!" Peter's eyes widened. "You might want to take a look at your hair first."

I rolled my eyes. "Shut it, dweeb. Where's Dad by the way?" I tried to ask it like I didn't care but since I suck at lying it probably looked forced.

Luckily Peter was too distracted to notice. "Oh, he went to the market. He's buying some breakfast."

"Kay," I replied. "Well I'll be right outside if you need anything."

"Just wait here for a second!" He whirled around, running back into my room.

I sighed but did what I was told.

A few minutes later he walked out carrying my black journal and a blue pencil. "I know that you like to write in it," he explained, handing the journal over to me.

I gratefully took it from him, smiling. "Thank you."

Peter just grinned and sat down on the couch, turning on the TV. I stood there for a second, just observing as he laughed at a cartoon. He looked happy.

A small smile crept up my lips as I opened the door and stepped outside. The cool wooden boards felt rough underneath my bare feet and a nice breeze brushed past me, causing goosebumps to rise on my skin. It was a nice feeling. It was so calm and comforting.

I sat down by the steps, leaning my back against the railing as I rested the journal against my knees. I hadn't written in it in a long time. I took a deep breath before opening it and flipping up an empty page.

_Dear journal, _

_I haven't written for a while. I think a part of me was afraid to. 'Cause this is where I reflect on everything in my life. Where I truly consider the choices that I've made and see where I should go from there. My choices lately have been foolish and very selfish. I want to say that that will change but the reality is that I'm not sure that it will. _

_On other, happier, terms... I saw Peter smile today. One of those small, just a quirk of the lips really, smiles. I remember that __smile from before. It makes me glad that he is finally beginning to heal. He has always been easy going, a bit too smart for his age maybe but a good kid. It was painful to see him go through what he did. But he seems to be getting better. Happier. And I can't help but think that Dad might be a part of that. _

_Dad, though grieving, is so different than what I remember. So much more lively. It's great to see and I want to be happy for him but I can't help but wonder if this happened because he left. If maybe being away from us made him... happier. Maybe he was better off without us. I know that can't be entirely true. It is obvious that he's __**trying**__ with Peter. I guess I just wish that he would've tried with me – both of us – before. _

_I don't know what to say other than that. I hope that someday we'll get along better? Yeah, I do wish that. But it's a long shot and we've got a long way left to go. _

_/Chloe _

I closed the journal and put it down beside me. Crossing my arms over my chest, I looked out over the beach. The waves were gently rolling into shore in a gently, almost lulling manner. I saw a couple of seagulls crossing over the open water and then diving down, trying to catch fish. It was a beautiful picture, what made it beautiful was the imperfections. The way that the yellow/green grass colored the rocky way down the the beach, the way that a crummy looking little house was placed just above it and the way the cute little raccoon was digging in the sand just about 200 feet above the shoreline.

Suddenly a shadow towered over me. I looked up to see Dad smiling down at me with a full plastic bag in his hand. "Hi," he said. "I've just been down to the store."

"Peter told me," I replied coolly. "You didn't drive?" I asked since I would have heard the car coming.

"Nah," he said. "The store is right down the street."

He didn't make a move to go inside so I decided to try some casual conversation. "That raccoon down there's kind of cute. Are there lots of them here?"

Dad ran his free hand through his hair. "Sometimes. It's a shame what it's doing to those eggs, though..."

My ears perked up. "What eggs?" I inquired.

Dad raised his eyebrows. "The sea turtle eggs. It's eating them."

My eyes widened in shock. It was eating baby sea turtles?

"Well, I should go inside," he said sheepishly, probably noticing my strange look. He moved past me and in the front door.

I immediately sprung to my feet, running down the beach barefoot. I ignored the small rocks that would definitely leave marks on my feet and rushed over to where the raccoon was digging. "Shoo! Shoo!" I yelled, waving my hands in front of the critter. "Go on, shoo!"

The raccoon slowly moved away from the eggs and disappeared into the high grass. I threw myself down on the ground, inspecting the scene in front of me. I noticed that one of the eggs was broken and emptied but the rest seemed okay. They were all lying in a small hole in the ground. I didn't know much about turtles but I knew that the raccoon would come back.

Now I don't know whether it was my maternal instinct kicking in or the fact that I really just needed a distraction but I began thinking of ways to protect them. I remembered that I had seen an old shop kart standing by the house earlier and I rushed over to get it. I filled it with all sorts of just junk, just anything that I could find. I grabbed pots, old toys and pieces of an old hen fence.

When I returned to the sea turtle nest I emptied the kart on the ground and them flipped it over so that it created a cage around the sea turtles. The holes in it were big enough for the raccoon to reach into though so I began clustering all the things I had picked up around it until it formed sort of a thick wall. Satisfied that they would be safe, I turned around and walked back to the house. I stomped straight over to the phone and picked up the receiver.

"Where have you been?" Dad asked curiously, Peter creeping up behind him looking equally interested.

"I was saving sea turtles," I retorted, still holding the phone. "What's the number to the aquarium?"

Dad looked surprised but replied no the less. "Umm, it should be right there on the list." He gestured a paper crowded with numbers just above the phone.

I nodded and looked over the list. I punched in the numbers and held the receiver to my ear as the signals went through.

"Georgia Aquarium Department how may I help you?" A woman asked in one of those sickly pleasant voices service people mostly use.

"Hi, yes, I would like to report a sea turtle nest by my house," I said.

"Okay," the woman spoke. "If you would please hold?"

"Sure," I sighed and leaned back against the wall, letting the phone rest loosely against my shoulder. I looked up to see Dad smiling brightly at me. I frowned and angled myself away from him. "What?" I asked gruffly.

"Oh, nothing," he said, still smiling a little. "It's just that you said 'my house'."

I groaned and rolled my eyes. This was going to be a long wait.

.

.

.

I grabbed a lounger and carried it down to where the sea turtle nest was buried. The aquarium had told me that they wouldn't be able to come until morning. I mean, _come on! _Didn't they care that lives were at stake here? So there was only one thing that I could do really. I would sleep out here so that I could watch over and protect them through out the night.

I folded out the chair and pressed it into the damp sand. I had brought a baseball bat but I was hoping that I wouldn't have to use it. I turned on the flashlight and angled it towards the nest. I clutched the bat to my chest as I leaned my head back against the stiff lounger. I closed my eyes and hoped that I would hear if the raccoon returned.

"_Hello?" _a deep voice called. _"Wake up!"_

My eyes fluttered open and found myself staring into a pair of bright green emerald eyes. I jumped back into the chair, clutching the armrest. I blinked a few times before looking up. I realized two things.

First, it was morning and I had slept through the entire night.

And second, I recognized that guy.

"You," I breathed, working up to a glare.

The guy's eyes widened in recognition and he, too, scowled at me. "_You._"

.

.

.

**A/N: Guess who _that was! :)_**

**I am sorry for any grammar and spelling mistakes in this and the former chapters. I suck at proofreading and I don't really have a beta, so sorry. **

**Please review, I wanna know what you think!**

**/Annabel**


	4. Chapter 4 : The Volunteer

****Disclaimer: I don't own DP or TLS so don't even bother calling me on it. I know.****

**A/N: Hey, guys! So I'm back with a foxy 'lil update which I hope you'll all enjoy... or at least pretend to ;)**

**On a little side note: Last chapter I said that I didn't proofread, which is true, but I didn't tell you the reason why my spelling and grammar might suck ass. I live in NYC but I was born in Sweden. It's my first language but after living in the states for five years I'd say I'm pretty fluent in English by now. Sorry for bothering you with this by the way... It's still kind of cool 'cause... wasn't Simon's mom supposed to be Swedish in the books? **

**Tack för att du läser! Translation: Thank you for reading! (Swedish is weird!)**

**Playlist: **

**Mean – Taylor Swift (First scene)**

**Heartbeats – Jose Gonzales (Second and third scene and I must say... it's perfect!)**

**Chapter 4**

_**Chloe**_

…

"_You?" _

I narrowed my eyes and him, clutching the bat in my hands. "What are you doing here?" I demanded, testing. I wasn't really a violent person. But you try being woken up by a big guy who practically assaulted you the other day and see where your mind takes you.

"What are _you _doing here?" He shot back, his emerald eyes practically beaming with hostility.

I had a mental debate. Could I just tell this guy where I lived? Was that even _safe? _Why did he even want to know that in the first place? He was on my damn turf! And what was his name? D- something... Daniel? Dave? Drake? Yeah... something like Drake... I raised the bat and slowly stretched myself out of the lounger, being careful to hold the bat in a tight grip in front of me. Aimed at Drake. "Listen up, Drake! I don't know who you are, except for what I saw yesterday... and if you don't recall you spilled my drink on me and now I am holding a baseball bat. You do the math." I raised my eyebrows. "Now tell me what the hell you're doing on my property!"

Drake opened his mouth, by the look on his face I'd say he was going to make a snide comment, when suddenly he glanced up at the beach house and then back down at me. Then realization hit him. "You're Steve's daughter?" He asked, almost doubtfully as if that were a highly unlikely possibility.

I lowered the bat and inch or so. "You know my Dad?"

Drake glared. "It's a small town. Everyone knows everyone. I just got a call from the aquarium saying that they needed me to check out a sea turtle nest." He looked upset that he even had to share this with me. Like I wasn't even worth speaking to or something.

"Why would they call you?" I retorted. Then I pursed my lips. "You don't work there, do you?"

His scowl intensified. "I volunteer." He sneered.

I tossed the bat down on the lounger, a little embarrassed that I had just threatened a volunteer. "Sorry," I murmured. "But you don't strike me as the volunteer kind of guy."

His eyes snapped up to meet mine and for a moment my breath caught in my throat. He was _intense. _However, I noticed that he didn't look very surprised at what I'd said. It was probably a normal assumption. "Whatever."

I swallowed roughly, fighting the urge to shift uncomfortably.

Drake gestured the protective cage I'd built around the sea turtles. "You did this?" He asked, squinting down at my creation.

"Yeah," I said.

"That's stupid," he grunted, squatting down to inspect my masterpiece.

"What?" I asked, giving him a look. "Why?"

"Because," he drawled, picking up an old bucket and tossing it into the grass. "How would the turtles get out?"

I frowned. This was only going to give him more reasons to call me dumb but I didn't really care what he thought so I'd ask anyway. "Huh?"

He sighed and rolled his eyes, continuing to speak, but this time as if to a five year old. "When the sea turtles hatch," he looked up at me, making eye contact, "how would they leave the nest?"

I looked down on the heap of crap surrounding the eggs and bit my lip nervously. "There was a raccoon out here yesterday." I argues. "I couldn't just let them get eaten!"

"You're right," he said to my big surprise. Then he gave a small smirk as he continued. "But it's good that you called us. Other wise you would have killed them."

I gaped at him. Was he implying that I was some kind of animal abuser or just that I was dumb as a bag of rocks? "Well, I had to protect them somehow!"

The corner of his lip drew up into an almost smile. "You slept out here to keep the raccoon away didn't you?"

I glared at him for looking so amused. "So what if I did?"

He rolled his eyes. "Nothing."

He was practically baiting me to say "no, tell me" but I wouldn't give him the satisfaction on embarrassing me even further. I just groaned in frustration. "I would say it's been a pleasure seeing you again, but..." I trailed off, while backing away from him.

"Right back at you," he replied.

I stuck my tongue out in a very immature manner and walked back up to the house. Closing the door behind me, I looked out the window, staring down at the strange boy who was beginning to take down my so called "protecting" fence. "What the hell?" I murmured to myself, not being able to tear my eyes away from the scene.

"Hell is a bad word." A snarky little voice came from behind me.

I glanced back to see Peter grinning mischievously at me. "Whatever, dweeb." I said playfully, reaching over to ruffle his hair.

"You need to stop touching _my _hair and start working on your own!" He said, giggling.

I touched my hair tentatively, feeling the knots. "Is it that bad?"

He rolled his baby blues and stepped closer to me so that he could see what I was looking at. "Who's that guy down there?" He asked, peering down at Drake. Peter watched in awe as he effortlessly removed the shopping kart from the sand and put it to the side. "What is he doing?"

"I don't know," I whispered carefully. "He works – _volunteers_ – for the aquarium." I glanced down at Peter. "I thought everyone knew everyone in small towns?" I teased.

Peter scoffed. "I haven't been here for very long, you know?"

I smiled at him and put my hand on his shoulder. "But it feels like forever."

.

.

.

Dinner was silent and very awkward. Even Peter seemed a little bit off. He was probably just nervous seeing as how this was the first dinner me and Dad had eaten together in years.

"There was a guy fixing the sea turtle nest down at the beach today." Peter said, picking at his salad with his fork, probably not wanting to eat the broccoli.

"Oh?" Dad said, cocking his head to the side. "Who was it?"

"I don't know," Peter said, frowning. Then he looked up at me. "Chloe was out there talking to him for a while."

I inwardly groaned. "Yeah, he said that he was a volunteer for the aquarium." I paused. "He also said that he knew you?"

Dad looked up from his pasta. "Oh, then it must have been Derek. I've reported some eggs in the past and most of the time he's been the one to show up. He must really like his job I think. What did you think of him?"

I blinked. _Derek? _Crap. I'd been calling him Drake all day and his name was Derek? Awkward. I swallowed and bobbed my head. "He was..." I searched for a word to describe him properly but could think of none. "Interesting," I said, looking down at my plate.

To my surprise Dad grinned. "Yeah, I think that's most peoples reaction when they first meet him." He stopped as if considering whether or not he should tell us this. "He's a hard guy to figure out. I think a lot of people judge him based on appearance. There's been a lot of rumors around town about him but from what I've heard he was a straight A student all through high school and he's got a full scholarship to Princeton this fall." Dad said, a smile tugging at his lips. "He'll probably turn out to be more than most of the kids in this town."

That really made me think. Was that really true? I suppose it had to be. I judged him straight away and I'm close to a lot of strange people. He had that vibe, I guess, it was almost like he didn't want anyone to come close to him. Almost like a stamp on his forehead that read _different_. Small towns can be cruel to people who don't fit in and looking the way that he did... it couldn't have been easy. I felt a little bit guilty, I only say a little because I knew I weren't the only one at blame. We had both been rude to each other. But I might have been wrong.

I took a bite of my salad. "Thanks for making me salad by the way," I told Dad, not looking directly at him. Thank you's were never my forte.

"You're welcome," he said, grinning brightly. "When did you become a vegetarian, anyway?"

The table grew silent and Peter was the one who got stuck with answering the question. "Three years ago, Dad."

.

.

.

I stared out the window again. Derek was back by the turtle nest, only this time he brought more than just a bag. He brought a chair, a lantern and what looked like a radio. He began folding out the chair and then sat down, just opposite to where the nest was. He had put a small cage like thing around the turtles earlier. It was round with holes in it so that the turtles could get out.

I wasn't sure why he was there though. Was it just to look after the turtles? If so, then Dad was right. He must really like volunteering. It seemed a little extreme what he was doing even if I had done the exact same thing the night before. I couldn't help but notice that he kept glancing over at the empty lounger next to him. The one I'd left behind this morning. Did he want me to join him? Probably not.

_Do I want him to want me to join him?_ I though silently to myself. _Maybe, I don't know. _I sighed and turned away from the window.

My heart seemed to stutter in my chest as my eyes fixated on the purple hoodie hanging over a chair. I narrowed my eyes at it, debating the issue over and over again in my head. Sighing, I grabbed my hoodie and pulled it over my head. I grabbed my journal and the book I was reading and walked over to the door.

"Where are you going?" Dad asked, from over by the TV where he was sitting with Peter.

"Out," I replied.

He rolled his eyes. "I can see that but _where_?"

"Just down by the beach. By the sea turtle nest." I replied innocently.

Just as I opened the door and was halfway out I heard Peter say. "She's going because that _volunteer guy _is out there."

.

.

.

**A/N: Oh! This is sort of a fast update for me. And what will happen in the next chapter? Thrilling, I know!**

**I want to thank all of you who've reviewed and favourited (let's pretend that's a real word) this story... thank you!**

**Please leave a review, give me some thoughts and maybe this super fast update thing will become a_ frequent _thing *wink wink* :)**

**/Annabel **


	5. Chapter 5 : The Interest

**A/N: Hi, I'm sorry that this chapter took so long for me to finish. ****But I first wrote it in Derek's POV but I didn't like how it turned out so I had to re-write it. Please forgive me! On a different subject, I am really hooked on country now for some reason. I mean, I can't stop listening to it! And to make it even worse, I sing along to all the songs! I mean, I really can't sing very well. **

**P.S. Some of you asked so I'm posting their ages. Peter is eight years old, Chloe is eighteen and Derek is nineteen… I'll explain why he isn't away at college later on…**

**Playlist:**

**Felt good on my lips – Tim McGraw**

**Chapter 5**

_**Chloe**_

…

I sat down on the lounger, cradling the books against my chest. I tried my best to look nonchalant as I opened up the book and pretended to read. I wasn't much of a reader especially when it came to books that were considered "classics" that basically meant one thing to me. Boring. I raised an eyebrow as I came across the name Van Helsing. Wasn't that a movie? Yep. You can't really un-see Hugh Jackman slaying vampires. I frowned and folded over to the cover, keeping my hand on the page I was pretending to read. _Dracula, _I read off the cover. _By Bram Stoker._

Well, a vampire book with a vampire hunter seems appropriate enough. I flipped back to the page I was on and read a line _"The whole bed would have been drenched to a scarlet with the blood the girl must have lost..."_ I narrowed my eyes at the page. That gave me the creeps.

"Dracula," a sarcastic voice stated from beside me.

I smirked as I continued fake reading my book. I knew I'd be able to make him talk to me first. "Yeah," I replied.

I dared to glance over at him and saw that he was staring down at his lap, looking conflicted. I knew that he wanted to ask me why I was out here. But he also didn't want to show that he cared whether I was there or not. I was sure that I was annoying the hell out of him.

"Umm… so do you like the book…" he trailed off, looking awkward.

I shrugged my shoulder innocently. "It's okay; I'm not really much for vampire books ever since my best friend dared me to read Twilight. I mean, Edward Cullen didn't do anything for me. Jacob Black was much hotter than that sparkly-"

"Why are you out here?" He finally snapped, ending my ridiculous rant.

I grinned knowing that I finally got to him. "I'm here to look after the sea turtles, Derek." I stated dumbly.

"You know my name now?" He asked raising an eyebrow.

I smirked. "Would you rather I'd call you Drake?"

"Not really…" he murmured quietly, he glanced up at me through his eyelashes. It was almost a timid gesture, so I decided that I had seen wrong. Nothing about Derek was timid.

"Well then I guess I'll stick to calling you Derek."

"Fine," he said.

I snorted. "Fine."

I continued browsing through the book while sneaking curious glances his way whenever I could. He was broodingly staring down at the nest, his eyebrows close together as if he was thinking really hard about something. For once I felt as if I actually wanted to hear those thoughts. He was so complicated; it almost made me want to learn more about him. Of course that would be hard seeing as he was one of the quietest guys I'd ever met and I really wasn't there to make friends with someone who didn't even want a friendship.

I stifled a groan. Why had I bothered coming outside, again?

He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "You don't have to stay out here. I'll look after them."

I fought the urge to roll my eyes. "That's okay. I'm too lazy to head back inside now anyway."

"O-okay," he stuttered.

I let out a small giggle. I used to have a pretty bad stutter when I was younger, and by pretty bad I mean that I could barely even speak one word without stuttering. It was pretty hard to overcome but I managed. "Please tell me that you don't stutter," I said in between my fits of giggles.

He glared at me. "I don't stutter." Then he quietly added. "Well, I never did before."

I raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"Nothing."

_Yeah right! _I wanted to say but I stopped myself. When I looked over at him his jaw was set and he was staring out over the beach with a thoughtful look on his face. I wasn't likely to get anything else out of him.

I closed Dracula and opened my journal, starting to write.

_Dear journal, _

_Ugh! I am currently sitting on the beach… AGAIN! But this time I'm not alone. The guy who spilled my milkshake on me the other day is also here. Derek. I realize that I might have been quick to judge him the other day. I mean, I really don't know too much about the guy. Not that I want to or anything…_

_I'll probably sleep out here. To protect the precious sea turtles… of course. What other reason could I possibly have? Derek? Nah. I can't be interested in him, right?_

_Because, I might not have been very into dating back home but I wasn't a nun either. I had my fair share of boyfriends. But most of them either had multiple facial piercings or tattoos. Guys like Liam, I guess. A couple of months ago I might have actually liked him. It wouldn't have been because of his "charming" personality. Of course not. It would have been because I was drunk and he was there. I'm not proud of whom I was back then, but I can only regret it, I can't change the past. Maybe I needed to act like an immature teenager for a while. Maybe it was a necessary thing for me to do at the time. _

_But I have moved past that and I won't be going back there. That's why I should avoid Liam and his stupid friends. I'm not sure about Rae. I kind of like her. She seems nice, confused, but nice. Of all the plastic Barbies out here she is… different which is good. I doubt any of those other girls would even talk to someone like me. _

_Well, I better try to get some sleep now.__ I don't know how much more of this awkward silence I can take!_

_/Chloe_

I shut the journal and gently put it down in the sand next to Dracula. I pulled up my hood and pulled my hair forward so that it fell down my shoulders. I had managed to remove most knots but it still looked pretty bad. I pulled my knees up to my chest and tried to find a comfortable position on the lounger. I settled for resting my head on my knees while clenching my eyes shut until sleep finally came to me.

.

.

.

"Chloe!" A familiar voice shouted.

I shot up in the lounger, blinking furiously. "Huh?" I asked stupidly, my voice thick with sleep. I could finally focus my eyes and saw Dad standing in front of me, frowning at something beside me. I looked over to see Derek rigidly sitting in his chair looking painfully awkward under Dad's suspicious stare.

I laughed.

I couldn't help it. Dad was looking so much like a wary parent unsure whether the boy his sweet little girl brought home was good enough for her and was trying to intimidate him into not messing with his daughter. And it was working. Derek almost looked _anxious_. It was just too funny.

They both turned to look at me like I was insane. I just shook my head and tried to qualm my giggles.

Dad cleared his throat. "Breakfast is ready," he said in a harsh tone that he never used. "Are you coming?"

I tried not to smile as I nodded, equally severe. "Yeah, Dad. I'll be right in."

He gave a curt nod and threw in a bold scowl over at Derek before he stalked back towards the house. I waited impatiently until he was in the house before I broke out into a new fit of giggles. Derek shot me another strange look but didn't say anything until my laughter died out.

"Your name is Chloe?" He asked.

I frowned, realizing that I never told him my name. "Yeah, Chloe Saunders. Is there something wrong with that name?"

"No," he grunted.

I smiled a little bit as I asked my next question. "This is the part when you tell me your last name…"

"Why do you want to know?" He retorted suspiciously.

I rolled my eyes. "Seriously, Derek? I haven't been _that_ mean to you, have I?"

When he still didn't say anything I gathered my things in my arms and stood up, getting ready to go up to the house.

"Souza." He said so quietly that I had to strain to hear it.

"What?" I asked, turning back to him.

"That's my name," he continued, looking away from me. "Derek Souza."

I grinned secretly to myself. "Well then… I'll see you around, Souza." And I couldn't keep that dumb smile off my face all the way into the house.

.

.

.

HI, CHLOE! THERE'S A PARTY DOWN BY THE PIER LATER. LOT'S OF PEOPLE ARE COMING SO WILL YOU PLEASE COME WITH ME?

/RAE

I read the text message and considered the offer. I probably shouldn't go… but it would be nice to see Rae again. I picked up my iPhone and wrote back.

I'D LOVE TO! WHAT TIME SHOULD I BE THERE?

/CHLOE

After a few minutes I got a reply.

GR8! SEE YOU AT 8!

/RAE

I walked out into the kitchen where Dad was standing bent over the stove stirring something that looked like a stew of some kind. "Hey, Dad. Can I go out with a friend later?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Would that friend happen to be Derek?"

I rolled my eyes. "No, it would be a girl. Named _Rae._"

He grinned sheepishly. "Well then it's fine. I'm glad that you asked me first."

I nodded hesitantly. I wasn't about to tell him that I said yes before I'd even thought about asking him. "Anytime."

"Will you eat dinner with us first?"

"Yeah, I guess so." I replied.

I was about to leave when he called. "Will you take Peter out for some ice cream? He's been asking me to take him all day, but I've been busy with some stuff for work…"

I sighed. _This _was the Dad that I knew. "Sure, I'll take him right now." I told him and walked out into the joint living room. "Peter, I'm taking you for ice cream, come on!"

Peter bounced into the room, his eyes shining with excitement. "Awesome, Chloe! Let's go!"

I smiled and took his hand. "Well come on then, Pete."

He snatched his hand back and said. "I'm not a little kid anymore. You don't have to hold my hand."

I fake gasped. "But what if I want to? What if, your big sister who hasn't seen you for _so _long wants to hold you hand. Aren't you going to let her?"

He narrowed his eyes at me for a minute then held out his hand for me to take. "Fine."

"Thank you." I said sweetly, pinching his cheek.

Later on, Peter and I were walking down the streets of the town holding two ice creams. I had bought a strawberry one while he'd bought a vanilla cone. Though he wasn't eating it as much as he was smearing it all over his face.

I gently pushed him into a chair by a coffee shop and pulled a tissue out of a box on the table, starting to dab it over his mouth. "You need to go easy on the ice cream there, bro. You don't want to get a brain freeze or something."

"I'm fine," he said, staring to push my hand away. I didn't really see how it happened but somehow that made the grip he had on his cone slip and it fell to the ground, making it crack open releasing a flow of vanilla ice cream to run out of it. "Dang it!" He said angrily.

I put down the tissue and place my hand on his shoulder. "That's okay, Pete. You can have my ice cream."

He looked up at me, tears beginning to form in his eyes. "I don't like strawberry."

I let out a shaky laugh, hating to see him sad. "We'll just go buy you another one, okay?" I said softly, patting his back.

"Thank you, Chloe, you're the best." He said, still looking a little upset.

I took his hand again and pulled him out of the chair. "Come on; let's go get you an ice cream… maybe a chocolate one this time, huh?" I offered, looking down at him.

When I looked back up again I met a pair of green eyes from a distance. Derek. I saw him standing by another store with the Asian guy from the volleyball game and a dark haired girl who was scrolling through a stack of CDs. Our eyes locked for a moment before I looked away.

Then, suddenly, they were all heading our way.

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**A/N: … More to come in the next chapter… I don't know yet but I'm thinking about making it in Derek's POV, like my plan was with this one. Let me know your thoughts on that and of course on **_**this **_**chapter as well!**

**P.S. I wrote this on my profile. The title of the story **_**She Is Love **_**comes from a song by **_**Parachute **_**which inspired part of the plotline for it. It's a great song but most of their songs are really good!**

**Reviews make my day, so if you have the time to leave one feel free to do so!**

**/Annabel**


	6. Chapter 6 : The Force of Tori

****Disclaimer: I don't own DP or TLS.****

**A/N: Hi, guys! ****I'm back with a very fast update because of your great and inspiring reviews! You're all **_**amazing!**_

**IMPORTANT**** NOTE:**

**I'm thinking about changing the ratings for this story! I don't know if there will be any lemons in it but I feel that, just in case, I should change the rating from T to M. If I decide to do so, it should be changed by the next chapter… **

**Playlist:**

**Rhythm of love – Plain White T's (Love this song!)**

**Chapter 6**

_**Derek**_

…

I had been forced to go shopping with Simon and Tori. They needed to get Dad something for his birthday and since they were both pretty cheap when it came to spending money on someone who wasn't themselves they had decided to buy something together. But since they couldn't stand each other they made me go with them even though I'd already gotten Dad a present.

But right now it seemed like Tori had gotten sidetracked because she currently was scrolling through a box full of CDs and Dad doesn't listen to music.

"That's okay, Pete. You can have my ice cream." I heard a soft voice plead from across the street.

I looked over to see Chloe crouched over a small boy with brown hair and blue eyes. I immediately knew that they resembled Chloe's and figured that they were related somehow.

"I don't like strawberry." The young boy complained sadly, looking down at his shoes.

Chloe let out a shaky laugh, patting his back. "We'll just go buy you another one, okay?

He smiled up at Chloe, his eyes still brimmed with tears but his sadness appeared to be subsiding. "Thank you, Chloe, you're the best."

The way that he said the words with so much confidence and love showed how much Chloe meant to him. And it was obvious that she cared just as much about him. When you look at Chloe you'd never know that she could be that kind and caring towards a kid.

She pulled him out of the chair, straightening up. "Come on; let's go get you an ice cream… maybe a chocolate one this time, huh?" She suggested, trying to make him feel better.

He nodded solemnly and let her take his hand as they paced down the street. Chloe looked up and her eyes met mine. She held my gaze for a moment before looking back down at the boy.

An elbow connected with my side making me snap put of my reverie. "What?" I snapped.

"That hot girl is over there again," Simon said, staring at Chloe. "Did you say her name was Chloe?"

"Yeah," I grunted, feeling oddly uncomfortable with the way he was ogling her.

"We should go talk to her," he said excitedly.

I was about to respond but Tori beat me to it. "Why? She doesn't look like anything special. She's pretty, but she looks sort of… sad." Then with an evil smirk she added. "Like Derek."

I glared at her and said. "Shut up, _Victoria._" She shot me a nasty look which I ignored. "And I told you. She hangs out with Liam and Rae. You shouldn't go there."

Simon raised his eyebrows. "Maybe I shouldn't… but I will."

I groaned and Tori snorted. "I'm positive that you'll regret it."

"Relax, bro!" He said, holding his hands up in surrender. "I'm just going to ask her if she's going to the party tonight." He put on his charming smile and began walking towards her.

Tori and I exchanged annoyed looks with each other before trailing after him. We weren't always on the best of terms but we both agreed that Simon could be a little much sometimes.

"Hey, Chloe!" He called, jogging the last few steps over to her.

Chloe looked up at him, confused. "Do I know you?" She asked. Then, slowly her gaze drifted to me. "_You _I do know." I would have figured that she meant it in a bad way if she hadn't been grinning when she said it. "Hey, Souza." She said in a teasing voice.

I could feel my cheeks heating up a little and frowned. Was I _blushing? _Tori let out a girlie giggle next to me. _Yes, _I thought. _Yes, I am. _"Hey, Chloe," I grunted awkwardly.

"Hello, I'm Tori," Tori said , sounding surprisingly nice.

"And I'm Simon," Simon introduced, flashing a white smile.

"Hey, this is my little brother Peter." She said, gesturing the young boy at her side.

Simon glanced down at him, his eyes widening. He hadn't even noticed him.

"Nice to meet you Peter." Tori said, smiling down at the boy. She held her hand out to him.

Peter shook her hand hesitantly. "Hi," he murmured shyly.

Chloe grinned at Tori appreciably. "Do you have a younger sibling?"

Tori shook her head sheepishly. "Nah just these two dorks, but I do like kids."

I stared at her in shock. Never in my life had I ever heard her say anything even remotely close to that.

"You do?" Simon asked stupidly.

Tori narrowed her eyes at him. "Yes," she turned back to Peter. "And I see that you dropped your ice cream. How 'bout I come with you and your sister an get you a new one?" She laughed. "A _better _one!"

Peter nodded vigorously. "Yeah! Tori can come, right Chloe?" He looked up at Chloe pleadingly.

Chloe giggled and nodded her head. "Sure. Why not?"

"I'll see you later," Tori told me and Simon.

"Bye, Souza," Chloe smirked and began walking away with Tori.

When Simon was looking away Tori mouthed "you're welcome" to me over her shoulder. I frowned. What was that supposed the mean? I shook that thought away and tried to listen to Simon babbling about how Tori "totally blew his chance with Chloe".

After about half an hour when Simon was checking out some surfboard my cell phone vibrated in my pocket. I flipped it open and saw a text from Tori.

MEET ME AND CHLOE AT THE JUICE SHOP DOWN BY THE FAIR. COME ALONE.

-T

I frowned down at my phone for a second before texting back.

WHY?

-D

It only took a few seconds before she wrote back.

'CUZ I'M TELLING YOU TO. NOW COME ON!

-T

I sighed and put the phone back in my pocket. I walked up to Simon who was holding an orange surfboard with a couple of Hawaiian style flowers on it. "Hey, Si. I'm going to check out a book. I'll see you later?"

Simon glanced up at me. "Uh, sure. I'll see you back home before the party?"

I nodded and made my way out of the store. I knew that Simon wouldn't want to go to a bookstore. It was almost too easy.

I had told Simon that I didn't want to go to the party down the pier later but he'd told me to consider it. I said that I would but we both knew that I wouldn't be going. That was his scene and not mine.

I spotted Chloe, Tori and Peter sitting by the juice bar, laughing. They looked like they were having fun. Even Tori. It was sort of scary… not that it didn't make me happy to see.

When Tori saw me she waved me over and pulled out a chair between her and Chloe. I hesitantly sat down, crossing my arms over my chest. "Why did I have to come alone?" I asked.

Tori smirked deviously. "Because… we wouldn't want Simon to scare our dear friend Chloe here, now would we?"

Chloe let out a musical laugh. "Yeah. That is _totally _the reason." When she stopped laughing she looked at me gravely. "Seriously, though. He seems nice and all, but he's a player, right?"

I felt a little disappointed that the reason Chloe didn't want to go out with Simon was because he was a player.

"Would you go out with him if he wasn't a player?" Tori asked, raising a suggestive eyebrow.

"Probably not," Chloe admitted sheepishly, a hint of red colouring her cheeks.

I looked at her, confused. Every girl wanted to go out with Simon. Why was she so different?

My thoughts were interrupted when Peter asked. "What does he play?"

Tori burst out laughing, but Chloe quickly slapped her hand over her mouth, while trying to keep from smiling herself. "Umm," Chloe glanced over at me, "Volleyball. He plays volleyball."

Peter nodded and returned to eating his ice cream.

Chloe slowly removed her hand and shot Tori a look. "He's only eight," she mouthed.

Tori rolled her eyes and turned to Peter. "So, Pete, what to you say you and me go check out the sea gulls down by the beach?"

Peter smiled. "Awesome!" He jumped out of his chair and pulled Tori with him down the beach.

Chloe stared after them a small grin tugging on her lips. "I think he's got a crush on her," she said musingly. "Adorable."

We sat in a comfortable silence for a moment before I broke it. "Do you like Tori? Because I know that she can come on a little strong-"

Chloe looked up at me through her eyelashes. "I like her, Derek. She's pretty awesome and she's really good with Pete."

I smiled a little bit. I liked the way it sounded when she spoke my name. "I've never really seen Tori like this." I said thoughtfully as I looked at her and Peter sitting on a rock, teasing the sea gulls.

"She's told me a lot about you," Chloe told me.

I gulped. "Really?"

She nodded. "Yeah… She seems to really look up to you."

I frowned, looking into her baby blue eyes, searching for dishonesty. Not that I thought that she would lie to me. Not really anyways. We'd gotten off at the wrong foot at first but… I could feel myself beginning to grow fond of her. "Tori basically hates me. She even tells me so."

"Are you sure?" Chloe asked, raising an eyebrow. "I think that's just how she is. She speaks very highly of you. She even told me that you're her favourite brother."

I scoffed. I might have been her favourite _foster _brother simply because I was her only one. I glanced back at Tori and caught her staring at me and Chloe. She winked at me gestured for me to talk. Was Tori trying to _help_ me? Was that even possible? I turned back to Chloe who was eyeing me curiously. "What?" I asked gruffly.

Chloe blinked. "Sorry, you just looked so thoughtful. It made _me_ thoughtful."

"I think Tori likes you," I murmured hesitantly. "She doesn't really have a lot of real friends since everyone found out that she's somewhat of a computer genius."

Chloe frowned. "Since when is that a bad thing?"

"She had promised her friends that she would go to Colombia with them in the fall but then she got accepted to MIT." I paused. "Me and Dad convinced her to reconsider. I mean, this is about her entire future… and she did. Now her friends think that she betrayed them or something and refuse to talk to her."

Chloe gasped. "Oh my gosh, that's terrible!" Her big eyes widened as they stared into mine. Suddenly, her small hand was placed gently on my arm. "You did the right thing, though."

I tried to ignore the feelings I got by her touch when I replied. "What did I do?"

"You told her to do what was best for _her_." She shrugged casually, letting go of my arm to my disappointment. "High school friends don't last forever."

Her eyes turned a bit sad when she spoke the last sentence and I was about to ask her about it when Peter shouted. "Chloe we have to go home if we want to have dinner with Dad before he leaves for work!"

"I'm coming!" Chloe called back to him. Then, quieter, she told me. "Are you coming to the party later?"

I don't know what came over me but I automatically said. "Yeah."

.

.

.

Tori nudged my arm as we were walking down the street. "Aren't you going to thank me?" She asked, cocking an eyebrow.

I narrowed my eyes at her. "For what?"

She sighed. "For getting rid of Simon and scoring you some extra time with Chloe."

"Why would I want extra time with her?"

Tori growled. "Don't play dumb with me, Derek! I'm too smart for that crap. If you want someone to trust your every word you're better off with Simon." She took a calming breath before continuing. "Now admit that you like her."

"She's okay," I played it off like it was nothing. She was about to retort when I cut her off. "She's friends with Liam and Rae."

Tori groaned and threw her hands up in frustration. "Stop giving me that excuse! You and I both know that she's only hung out with Liam once and the same goes for that bitch Rae."

"Maybe you're right," I muttered.

Tori grinned from ear to ear. "I know I am. So are you coming to the party tonight."

"Yeah, I kind of already agreed to it," I said.

Tori jumped up and down happily. "I told you so!" Then she went on singing. "Chloe and Derek sitting in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" Then she gave a girlish squeal. "Yep, Chlerek is on the go!"

I frowned. "Chlerek?"

She looked at me like I was dumb. "Chloe and Derek, duh!"

I groaned and followed her towards the car. This was going to be a long drive. I shouldn't have ditched Simon.

.

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**A/N: What do you T-H-I-N-K about the chapter and about me changing the ratings?**

**Reviews make my day so if you have the time to leave one feel free to do so!**

**/Annabel**


	7. Chapter 7 : The Friendship

**A/N: Hey, I am here with an update and it's time for a beach party! I wrote two versions of this chapter so after like thirty minutes of hard thinking I decided on this one. **

**I'm also just going to clarify that this fic will be pretty easy going since this is sort of an AU spin on things. I'm mostly writing it because it's so much fun and not at all depressing which it can get when you're writing really "heavy" stories (if I'm making any sense). **

**P.S. Thank you for all your **_**awesome**_** reviews and pointers that were super helpful!**

**Playlist:**

**Mr. Right – A Rocket To The Moon**

**Chapter 7**

_**Derek**_

…

I had no idea what I was supposed to wear. Was I supposed to go in my regular sneakers, shorts and t-shirt or was I supposed to wear something else? I really had no idea since I'd never been to a real party before. Well, I'd been forced to attend the ones that Simon had thrown while Dad was out of town but those were always in our house. When I got bored I could just go up to my room and hope that I didn't find some random teenagers making out on my bed. Simon did say that he was sorry about that, though.

I sighed and put on a black zip-up hoodie to wear open over my green t-shirt. I looked at myself in the mirror. I wasn't really a great sight to see. My acne had gone down since I got out of high school and my past odour problem was basically gone but I would never be handsome like Simon. And I never used to care about that… until now.

There was a knock on my door. I groaned and turned away from my reflection. "Come in," I grunted.

Tori stepped in, leaving the door open behind her. "Hey, Derek. Are you ready to go yet?"

I frowned. Tori never knocked before stomping into my room. She just burst in. I narrowed my eyes at her. "Umm… Yeah, I'm ready."

Tori shot me a swift nod. "Okay, I'll meet you downstairs."

"Okay," I replied hesitantly as she disappeared out the door again. That was weird. Tori was almost acting… nice. She must really like Chloe.

I walked down the stairs and saw Simon and Tori standing by the door. When they heard me Simon glanced up at me, frowning. "You're going to the party?" He asked, confused.

I sighed. "Yes."

Tori smirked next to him. "Oh, didn't he tell you? Chloe invited him."

Simon's jaw dropped. "Huh?" He asked stupidly, staring up at me.

I glared at Tori. "Thank you," I said sarcastically.

Tori smiled sweetly. "You're very welcome, bro."

.

.

.

I stared out into the crowd. A red cup filled what most likely was spiked punch was kept firm in my hand. Simon had ditched me the moment I parked the car after ignoring me the entire drive and I was stuck standing with Tori who had a firm glare stuck on her face.

I nudged her with my elbow. "I thought that you wanted to come tonight."

Tori didn't look at me when she answered. "I did… I didn't. I guess I just wanted to come to prove to myself that I could if I wanted to." She paused for a moment. "If that makes any sense."

I shrugged. "It kind of does actually."

"I'm going to go see if I can find Chloe," Tori said. "She texted me earlier. She's meeting me at the path to her house." She looked up at me. "You should come; I don't really know where she lives."

I raised an eyebrow at her. I doubted that Tori didn't know every single inch of this beach. I wasn't sure why she would want my help, let alone ask me for it. She didn't ask for favours unless there was something in it for herself. Against my better judgement, I nodded. "Okay."

I worked myself through the sea of drunken teenagers. I knew it was better if I walked ahead of Tori. People didn't dare bump into me so she wouldn't have a problem getting through.

The fact that people avoided me like the plague had stopped bothering me years ago. All that mattered right now was that Chloe didn't avoid me. She didn't seem to care what other people thought about her or anyone else, she had a mind of her own. I wasn't sure whether that was a good thing or not in the long run. Probably a little bit of both.

I spotted Chloe standing by the path that lead east down to the pier. She was wearing a pair of light blue jeans, a black oversized t-shirt that read _this is my zombie killing shirt _and a pair of white Converse hi-tops. She smiled when she saw us approaching. Tori ran ahead of me, pulling Chloe into a hug.

I rolled my eyes and walked up to them. "Let the girl breathe, Tori."

Tori let Chloe go and shot me a scowl. "Hi, Chloe."

"Hey, Tori," Chloe said, looking up at me. "And you too, Souza."

"Hey," I replied not so smoothly.

Chloe's eyes glazed over for a minute as she thought about something far away. I couldn't help but get caught up in her blue orbs for a second; I wanted to know what she was thinking about.

Suddenly, she blinked and her lips turned up into a small smile. "I really love this song."

I frowned as I tried to listen to the music thumping in the background. "I've never really heard it before."

Chloe looked shocked so Tori cut in. "Derek doesn't really listen to music if it isn't some crappy eighties rock band."

I glared at her. "There's nothing wrong with listening to U2 and Journey." I tried to defend myself.

Chloe just laughed and grabbed my arm, pulling my faced down to her level so that she could whisper in my ear. "The song is called Mr. Right it's by A Rocket To The moon." She pulled back, letting me straighten up. "And I really like it." She smirked at me. "So I want to dance." She glanced over at Tori questionably.

Tori held her hands up. "No offense Chloe but I don't swing that way."

Chloe looked up at me pleadingly, her lower lip slightly jutting out. "That leaves you, Souza."

I shook my head, "I don't dance."

Tori laughed and shot me a look. "Puh-lease, you _can't_ dance." She roughly pried the punch cup out of my fingers.

Chloe joined in with giggles that made her dimples show. "Then it's a damn good thing that I'm an awesome teacher!" She took my now free hand and pulled me into the dancing crowd.

I glance back at Tori over my shoulder and saw her giving me the thumbs up behind Chloe's back. I rolled my eyes and let myself be dragged into the mass of drunken teenagers.

She dropped my hand and pulled us to a stop. She looked up at me with smiling eyes. "Hands on my hips, Souza." She said in a playfully stern voice.

I looked at her doubtfully, not moving.

She rolled her eyes and grabbed my hands placing them firmly on her hips. "There we are," she grinned and hung her arms loosely around my neck.

Slowly, she began moving softly to the music making me follow suit although my actions looked much more forced and ungraceful than hers. She closed her eyes and relaxed into me. I let my hands slip from her hips so that they were connected at the small of her back. I'd never really been this close to a girl, at least not one I liked. And staring down at Chloe's small face I knew that I had some kind of feelings towards her. I wasn't sure what they were of what they meant for us but I knew that I didn't mind having them. Even though I probably should. I didn't know if she felt the same way about me or if she saw me as a friend… or simply as the foster brother of a friend. Tori and Chloe had barely known each other for a day but they acted like they'd known each other for years. It was so easy for them.

"What are you thinking about?" Chloe asked softly.

I looked down to see her staring up at me with her head tilted slightly to the side. "Nothing," I muttered hoarsely.

She slapped the back of my head. "It's not nothing!" She argued. "Tell me."

I groaned. "Maybe you don't want to know."

She smirked and leaned in to whisper in my ear. "Maybe _I do_ want to know." She leaned back an inch to look me in the eye. The mere proximity of our faces made my heart pound. "Please?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

I sighed and she fell back on her heels. "I was thinking about us. I mean, are we… friends?"

Chloe threw her head back and laughed. "Yes, Souza; we're friends."

I nodded even though I felt like the words weren't enough.

When she quieted down she looked at me a bit more seriously. "I didn't come out here to who-the-hell-cares Georgia to make friends but I guess you just got lucky."

I frowned. "Why _did_ you come to Georgia?"

She didn't have time to answer or even react before another voice cut it. "Chloe! What the hell are you doing with dog-breath Derek?" I looked over to see Rachelle Rogers standing there with her arms crossed over her chest.

Chloe whirled around, dropping her arms from around my neck and I reluctantly unlocked my arms from around her waist. "Rae?" She asked. "What do you mean?" She glanced back at me, a smile forming on her plump lips. "Derek and I are friends."

Rae made a disgusted face. "You can't be serious!"

Chloe looked offended. "I kind of am. Do you have a problem with that?"

"Of course I do!" Rae shrieked, hastily throwing her tangled copper hair over her shoulder. "You don't really know him," she shot me a mean scowl. "He thinks he's so much better than everyone else. _He _and his pompous brother and sister!"

Chloe looked stunned from Rae's outburst. "I like Tori," she murmured. "She's a lot nicer than you led on."

"Victoria Enright Bae?" Rae asked incredulously. "Are you sure we're talking about the same person here? In high school she was always the queen bi-"

I growled and stepped next to Chloe. "We're not in high school anymore Rachelle. Just get over yourself."

Rae sneered at me. "Yeah, Derek. You if anyone would know _that_."

I narrowed my eyes at her. That was a seriously low blow. Sure, she was right but that didn't make it okay.

"That's right!" A familiarly mocking voice came from behind Rae. "Little Derek has quite the record."

I glared at Liam. "I see that you made it Liam. Though I can't say that it pleases me."

Liam smirked his trademark predatory grin. "Well," he threw in a lingering look at Chloe, "when I heard that Chloe was coming I couldn't help myself."

I bit back a growl. "Try harder next time."

"Ugh," Chloe sighed, running her fingers through her hair. "This is exactly why I didn't come here to make friends." She looked at me looking disappointed. "People always bring their crap down on you."

"Do you want to go see Tori?" I asked her, ignoring Rae and Liam.

Chloe nodded. "Sure." She threw them a last glance before we headed back towards Tori.

I saw her standing leaned against a tree and it looks like she found the refreshments table because there were four empty punch cups by her feet. I rolled my eyes; I knew that leaving my drink with her was a bad idea. Let's just say that my foster sister couldn't handle her alcohol.

"Hi, guys!" Tori squealed rushing forward, stumbling straight into Chloe's arms. "How was the dance? Did you kiss?" She paused. "He didn't step on your foot did he?"

I almost groaned from embarrassment.

Chloe didn't say anything but just stared at the black haired girl in front of her. She sniffed the air in front of Tori's face and frowned. "Have you been drinking?"

"Maybe," Tori giggled, then she leaned in and stage whispered into Chloe's ear. "But don't tell Derek. He'll tell Dad."

I rolled my eyes and threw her arm over my shoulder, giving her support so that she could walk. I turned to Chloe. "I should probably get her home. Apparently this party is over for me." I probably should have felt disappointed that I had to leave but this was a record for me. I'd never stayed at a party for over thirty minutes. This had been at least forty. I did feel slightly annoyed that I would have to leave Chloe.

"I'll probably go home, too." She said.

I caught Liam staring at Chloe and quickly came up with a suggestion. "I can drive you."

"You don't have to-"

I cut her off. "It's no problem. If anything you'll be helping me."

She frowned. "How so?"

I smirked. "If she throws up – you can help me clean it up."

.

.

.

After I threw _the drunk_ into the back seat and started up the car I texted Simon that he would have to get a ride home with a friend.

Chloe climbed into the passenger seat and fastened her seat belt. "Thanks for giving me a ride, by the way. Walking _that _many metres can really be a bitch!" She said with playful sarcasm. "It's barely even a kilometre but still… thank you."

I cocked an eyebrow at her. "You measure in metres and kilometres?"

She patted my head patronizingly. "There is so much that you don't know about me, Souza."

"Will I ever find out?" I asked hesitantly.

"Depends." She said secretively.

I turned my head towards her. "On what?"

"On you."

I shook my head, smiling to myself, as I pulled out of the parking lot.

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**A/N: Aha! So what do you think? The next chapter will be back in Chloe's POV and not to give anything away but a hung-over Tori will take part in it. **

**Reviews help make my day awesome so if you have the time feel free to leave one!**

**/Annabel**


	8. Chapter 8 : The Rae of It

**A/N: Hi, guys! What's up? How's life? This is what my life is like right now… Well, I started to write the chapter that was meant to be chapter 8 which I had saved on my laptop at my mom's place. But… then I had to head over to my Dad 'cause of school and stuff. So, of course, the chapter is saved on the laptop I have at my Mom and I can't post it right now. So this is more of a little treat and a plot thickener than an actual chapter written from my brand new HP laptop! Wish me luck, bye!**

**P.S. I'd like to thank all of you who've reviewed this story! It means so much to me! …It's really fun to read as well!**

**Playlist:**

**The Other Side – Bruno Mars**

**Chapter 8**

_**Rae**_

…

I grabbed a cup of punch and stumbled over to where Liam and Ramon were sitting with a bunch of other people that I didn't really know. I sat down in the sand in between the two guys, handing Liam his punch. "Here you go, baby." I whispered huskily in his ear.

Liam shoved me away roughly. "Fuck off, Rae!"

I glared at him, "What crawled up your ass and died?"

"Nothing," he murmured quietly, staring into the flames of the bonfire.

"But-" I started in a whiny voice but he cut me off.

His jaw tensed and he narrowed his eyes, which were still intent on the fire. "Nothing, Rae. Go bother someone else!"

I leaned back in towards him. "But I don't want anyone else-"

Liam's head snapped up and his cold black eyes met mine in a hard scowl. "And _I _don't want _you_! So just piss off."

"Hey," I objected, trying to keep some of whatever dignity I had left. "I haven't even done anything to you!"

"Exactly," he sneered. "I've been letting you stay with me for months and you haven't given me anything! You haven't done anything for me. You're just a stupid lapdog that I keep around for the hell of it." He paused, an evil smirk appearing on his full lips. "Maybe I should kick you out. You'd deserve it."

I stared at him with wide eyes. Did he really mean that? Of course he did. "P-please, baby! Just t-t-tell me w-what you want me to do. I'll do it!" I tried to beg, latching my hands around his wrist.

He shook my hand off of him. "Anything?" He questioned.

I nodded vigorously. "Yes, anything!"

Liam's smirk grew. "I need you to find out some things about Chloe."

I frowned. "Why?" I asked suspiciously. "Do you think she's hotter than me?"

"Yes," he retorted a blank look covering his face. "But this isn't about her. This is about Derek."

I growled, upset at how obvious it was that Liam liked Chloe more than me. I knew that she would try to steal him from me. I just knew it. "Are you sure that we can't make it about her then?"

Liam laughed his usual chuckle that lasted for a few seconds but never reached his eyes. "All in good time, pet."

I smiled up at him. I knew that when he called me "pet" he actually meant it like I was his play toy for him to do whatever he wanted me to but I still liked it. He didn't have a nickname for Chloe. Only for me.

I glanced over at Ramon who was chatting up some bimbo before returning my eyes over to Liam. "Do you want to get out of here?" I asked hopefully.

Liam shrugged. "No," he shot me a disgusted look. "At least not with _you_." He looked over at a thin blonde girl with blue eyes. He licked his lips expectantly as he watched the girl from a distance.

I scowled at the girl who was stealing his attention. "She'd never go for you." I told him.

Liam looked back at me, predatory anticipation still fresh in his eyes. "I know. She's just something to keep me warm until I can get with the real deal."

"Who's the real deal?"

He raised an eyebrow and returned to eye-screwing the blonde. "Chloe."

**.**

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**A/N: Blonde hair? Blue eyes? Did anyone figure it out before I even wrote it? All of you? Huh. Sorry for the short chapter but hopefully the next chapter will be up by the end of the week, if not sooner, and it will be the normal length. **

**Anyways… I hope you liked the chapter and even if you didn't please leave a review 'cause you know I love 'em!**

**/Annabel**


	9. Chapter 9 : The Golden One

**Disclaimer: I do not own Darkest Powers or the Last Song… I know… Tragic. **

**A/N: Hi, guys! I know I said I'd update at the end of last week but I got swamped with homework and I didn't have time until today! And for this chapter at least we're returning to Chloe's POV. **

**I am so glad that so many of you reviewed for that short little chapter I wrote, it made me so happy… and left me feeling slightly guilt over not being able to update with this chapter straight away.**

**Anyways… I hope you guys will enjoy this chapter.**

**Playlist:**

**All I Ever Wanted – Kelly Clarkson**

**Tied Together With A Smile – Taylor Swift**

**Chapter 9**

_**Chloe**_

…

_Dear journal, _

_Last night was fun. Well, it was as close to fun as I've come since I arrived in Georgia. The night started out great, I mean, it was nice to see Tori again. It was nice to see Derek, too. For once I was actually happy to have been wrong about something. Derek was quirky, caring and deep, deep down I know that he is a genuinely nice guy. Which is new for me. I have been the girl who has gone out with the bad boys and the arrogant ones in the past. There were some nice guys in the mix, too but it never worked out. _

_I'm__ disappointed in Rae. I thought that she was different. In a good way, of course. Even though I'm not sure who to believe at this point I'm not ready to give up on her yet. I haven't been here for very long. They don't know my background and I don't know theirs. Maybe that's for the best. Maybe I'm not meant to know them or cause them more trouble than I already have. Maybe I should just stay away from all of them. That would be the simplest thing to do for me – for them. Cut all ties and just spend the summer with Peter before I leave. . _

_But that wouldn't work. _

_Because of them… mostly him, I think._

_Derek __Souza. _

_Derek is awesome. Which, I know, sounds a little bit __juvenile, but he is. I just wished that more people could see that. See how much he cares about Tori and Simon. The way he protects her like she's truly his sister and the way he would take a bullet for his brother. Even though he doesn't act like it, or maybe he doesn't even know it, but he's probably the most caring guy I've ever met. And I can feel myself starting to care about him._

_Well, I should probably head back inside. Though the weather is once again gor__geous I should get some breakfast or… a snack or something. _

_/Chloe_

I closed the journal and took a deep breath. Inhaling the fresh ocean scent, hearing the distant waves crash ashore. This, right now, was my little piece of heaven. So calm, so serene, so comforting-

"Chloe!"

I snapped out of my daydream to see Tori standing in front of me. She looked terrible. There were black circles underneath her eyes, her usually spiky black hair was hanging lankly around her face and her shoulders were drooping. "You look like shit," I told her honestly.

She glared and sat down next to me on the porch. "Thank you," she replied, narrowing her eyes. "I know."

"You see," I said in my lecturing voice, nonchalantly slipping the journal behind my back, "_this_ is why I don't drink." _At least not anymore, _I corrected in my head.

Tori rolled her eyes. "Sure, you're a regular Virgin Mary." She said sarcastically.

"Hey!" I yelled, smirking when I saw her flinch. "Shut up!"

She rubbed her head before saying. "Keep it down. I'm really hung-over."

I grinned. "I know, I helped drag you to the car last night, remember? Now, why are you here?"

She faked innocence. "What? I can't just drop by to visit a friend?"

I raised a doubtful eyebrow. "Really?"

Tori sighed. "The boys wanted to go out for breakfast."

"And you immediately thought you'd stop by my house?" I asked, sarcastically.

"No, silly!" She exclaimed. "I want you to come with us. Being the only girl sucks enough even when you don't want to throw up all the time."

I glanced down at my cut-off jeans shorts, white tank top and black cardigan I'd thrown over it. "I don't really think that I'm dressed to go, well – anywhere."

Tori rolled her eyes. "You look fine, let's go!" She stood up and started walking not letting me respond.

I pushed the journal into my back pocket before I trailing after her. I watched as she climbed into the backseat of the black Chevy and I slowly followed suit. I pulled the seatbelt over my chest and pushed it into the hook. "Hi, guys." I said with a forced cheerfulness.

"Hey, Chloe!" Simon said cheekily, craning his neck so that he could look back at me from the front seat.

I gave him an awkward wave. "Hey." When Derek didn't say anything I turned to Tori. "So… have you seen anything good on TV lately?"

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I slipped into the booth next to Tori, sitting opposite to Derek. I suspected that Tori had planned it out that way but didn't say anything.

I ordered a plate of pancakes and a strawberry milkshake. When the waitress returned with our orders I shoot Derek a playful scowl and said. "Try not to spill this one on me, okay?"

Derek grunted. "I'll try my hardest."

Tori looked back and forth between us. "Wait up? Is there something that I don't know? You know that I hate being kept out of the loop. Tell me!"

I rolled my eyes. "You don't have to know everything, Tori. Plus, it's not really my best memory of Derek." I smiled when I caught him glaring at me from across the table.

"Oh!" Tori said, clapping her hands together. "Please tell me!"

I groaned. "No."

"Pretty, pretty, pretty plea-"

I cut her off. "I thought you that were hung-over?"

Tori smirked and took a long sip out of her cappuccino. "Coffee works wonders for me. Now, tell me!"

I stifled another groan and looked at Derek for help. He sighed and said. "We were at the beach, Simon pulled an dumbass move on the volleyball field, I bumped into Chloe which resulted into her milkshake being thrown all over her shirt. And I was an ass." He shot Tori a dark look. "Will you let it go now?"

To my surprise Tori burst out laughing. Like a very loud, awkward donkey like laugh. "Oh m-my God!" She sputtered. "That totally sounds like you Derek." She looked over at me. "And _you! _I bet you hated him!"

I bit my lower lip. "Uh… no comment?"

"But I was nice, right?" Simon asked.

After a few more minutes of listening to Tori going on and on about something we all dug into our breakfast.

About a half hour later we were leaving the diner together. Tori, bless her determined heart, was dragging Simon away to some new clothing store. I have no idea how she convinced him to come with her since he looked like he'd rather jump into an ice cold ocean… but she managed. Which left me and Derek to do whatever we wanted. He was, however, being very difficult about it.

"So you're saying that you wouldn't mind going by the record store?" I pressed, searching his face for some kind of reasonable response.

But, once again, he replied with a noncommittal grunt.

I sighed and pulled him to a stop on the street. "Is something bothering you?" I could feel another grunt coming so I cut him off. "And I would like a real answer, thank you."

Derek looked exasperated but replied nonetheless. "I'm fine, Chloe. Let's just go to the record store or whatever."

I growled and stomped into the store, not bothering looking back at him. If he was going to be like this; I was going to be just as immature.

I rummaged through a box of CDs picking up a couple that I either hadn't bought yet or hadn't brought with me from New York. Music was probably one of my most favourite things in the world. I wasn't much of a singer, though it used to be an old dream of mine, I had given up on it years ago. I liked how you could get lost in the lyrics of a song and just let go of whatever had been getting you upset before. I glanced over at Derek who was standing leaned against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, staring off into the distance. I really wanted to listen to some music right then.

I brought the CDs over to the cashier and pulled the money I always carry just in case out of my pocket. "Here you go." I told the greasy looking guy working the cash register and handed him the money.

"Thank you," he said and placed the CDs into a see through bag. He handed me the plastic bag with a polite smile. "Here you are."

I murmured a quick "thanks" and quickly scattered out of the store.

It was like I could feel Derek following me but I continued walking as if I didn't know or care. It was easier said than done though because I can not count how many times I had to stop myself from looking back to make sure that he was still behind me.

After a while I could hear a sigh coming from behind me and I was being pulled to a stop. I closed my eyes for a second, trying to gather my thoughts before turning around. "What?" I asked a little roughly.

"Can you stop ignoring me?" Derek asked, his emerald eyes pleading with me.

It took all my will power not to give in. "Will you tell me what's bothering you?"

"No." He told me.

I let out a long breath. "Then I won't stop ignoring you. I mean, don't you trust me?"

"Of course I do." Derek tried to reach for my hand but I backed away from him. "You just don't want to know what's bothering me." He murmured quietly.

I rolled my eyes. "I think that I can decide that for myself. Please, Derek?"

Derek still looked dubious… but it was more than that. He almost looked nervous. Which, of course, only made me more eager to find out what he was hiding.

"Derek-"

He cut me off. "Chloe, will you go out with me?"

I gaped. "E-excuse me?" I was one hundred and ten percent positive that I had heard him wrong. "Would you care to r-r-repeat t-that?" I was so bewildered that I didn't care a bit about my stutter.

"I knew that you wouldn't go out with me." He muttered a little sadly, looking down at the ground. "I don't know what I was thinking… I mean, I'm never going to be like Simon."

I just kept staring at him. Even if I thought that I might have been forming some sort of feelings towards him I didn't think that he would reciprocate them even less ask me out. I didn't think that he had it in him… but I felt myself liking that he'd, once again, managed to surprise me. "But you didn't even give me a chance to answer." I said, breathlessly.

His head snapped back up, looking into my eyes. "Huh?" He asked hesitantly, obviously not wanting to get his hopes up.

I smiled at him, pushing back the thoughts that threatened to ruin this moment for me. The thoughts that were screaming _this is never going to work out _and _this will just end up hurting both of you_. I answered. "You're right, Derek. You will never be like Simon. You will never be the one who gets the girl just by shooting her a charming smile and telling her that she looks pretty."

The hopeful look that had been on his face vanished.

"So you're lucky that I'm not like any other girl." I grinned at him. "And I'm glad that you're not like Simon. So, yeah Derek. I'll go out with you."

Derek looked so stunned that I had to clench my jaw to keep from laughing. "You're serious?"

"Yes," I told him honestly. "But I want you to know that I'm not the easiest girl to date and that if this doesn't work out – you have to promise that we'll stay friends."

"Sure," Derek smiled and it was so amazing to see because Derek wasn't much for smiling and when he did it never reached his eyes. I could see the relief in his eyes and the nervousness that still remained.

"Great," I replied. "Come down to the beach tonight by my house, okay?"

"Sure," he repeated as if this was the only word he could think of.

I smiled and we returned to walking down the street both completely unaware of who had been watching us the entire time.

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**A/N: So who is watching them? The next chapter will have the "date" in it but I think we can all figure out that since its Chlerek this will be a little different than a normal date. **

**I'm working on the Rae situation right now. I loved all your positive reviews on the last chapter and some of you were mad at her but – uh-uh… I almost let a little spoiler slip in there...**

**Please leave a review giving me your input on the chapter!**

**/Annabel**


	10. Chapter 10: The Beach

**Disclaimer: I do not own Darkest Powers or The Last Song. **

**A/N: Hi guys! Sorry for the not so fast update but school has been swamping me up BADLY. I mean, I'm all for going to a good school but my social life has gotten seriously burned by my damn essay assignment! As you might have noticed I posted another story here (another Chlerek) that I hope you'll read and like! **

**P.S. This chapter might not be the longest but I hope it was worth a little wait! **

**Playlist:**

**Alligator Sky – Owl City **

**Rainbow Veins – Owl City**

**Chapter 10**

_**Derek**_

…

It was the wait that was the hardest. I wanted so badly to see her, to maybe walk up to her door, knock and get to see that wonderful smile light up her face. But she _had _told me to meet her at the beach – so there I was. Just _waiting _in the middle of a beautiful beach staring at an equally beautiful sunset_. _And it was getting very frustrating.

I knew that I had probably arrived early and she probably didn't even know that I was there but it would've been nice to see her. After all, that was kind of the reason that I asked her out in the first place. So that I could see her; spend time with her. It wasn't all me though, Tori might have had something to do when it came to persuading me to talking to her about… going out.

I think her exact words had been something like, "If you don't ask her out soon someone else will. Now suck it up and be a man." I had sighed and rolled my eyes, not letting the internal battle that had already begun inside show on the outside.

I heard the door crack open and I looked back and saw Chloe walking down the porch. She was wearing a pair of black sweats and a blue t-shirt that read _All Time Low_. I distinctly remembered Tori talking about them, but I wasn't sure whether they were some kind of band or, like, just famous. Chloe smiled at me and sat down in the lounger that had been sitting out on the beach for the entire week. "Hey, Souza," she said.

"Hello," I replied, my voice sounding thick and uncomfortable. I cleared my throat. "How's Peter?" I asked, just to bring up some kind of conversation, which for me was hard. Ask anyone. I wasn't really the most conversational person.

Chloe raised an amused eyebrow, the sides of her mouth tilting slightly upwards. "If that's really what you want to talk about – Peter is fine. That kid is like freaking Iron Man! He could go through _anything_ and come out alright!" Her voice turned slightly wistful as she spoke the last sentence.

I grinned slightly, trying to bring her mood back up. Luckily it seemed to work and she shot me a small smile again. "How is Steve?"

"You're asking me about my father?" She asked me, amused.

My eyes widened was that not okay? "Uh, no?" I suggested a bit sheepishly.

"That's fine," she turned around in her seat and waved at someone in their window.

I quickly shifted in my seat to see who it was but all I saw was the curtains being drawn shut. I looked at Chloe questioningly. "Who was that?"

Chloe shrugged. "Dad. I think that he was checking up on us."

"Does he think that I'm a bad influence or something?" I asked, slightly hurt. I really thought that Steve was a good guy; always giving back to the community.

Chloe laughed, it was a nice carefree laugh that made my insecurities just melt away. "No! I think that it's the opposite of that, actually." She explained with a sly smirk.

My eyebrows shot up. "He thinks that _you _are a bad influence on _me_? Why?" I asked, confused. I mean, _I _was the big hulking dude with an attitude problem, not _Chloe. _

"You don't know my track record," Chloe explained a little bit sadly. "I think that you deserve to know that I'm really not the best person." She sighed, running a hand through her straight blonde hair.

I stared at her, stunned. How could thing _gorgeous _girl, with these big innocent blue eyes that portray no harm, sit here and tell me that she's not a good person. Her whole personality was captivating. "And I am?" I asked, not really believing it.

Chloe looked up at me from underneath her thick eyelashes. "Maybe," she whispered quietly. "I haven't decided yet."

I seriously don't know what came over me. I didn't talk about feelings. I didn't talk about _nice _things. But right then, I told her exactly what was on my mind. "Well I think that you are the _best _person Chloe Saunders."

And when a saw a smile light up her face I knew that I had said the right thing. She leaned forward and I stared at her in shock, unsure of where she was going with this.

Then she pressed her lips against mine.

The kiss was over before it began. When I opened my eyes, Chloe was leaned back in her lounger again, a silent smirk on her face.

I'm sure that I looked somewhat similar (only slightly more dumfounded). Sure, I had been kissed before. Mostly by drunken girls who couldn't care less who I was because they were only looking for attention and then there was the one time that a girl kissed me to make her boyfriend jealous. The latter actually earned me a shiner. But when Chloe had kissed me it had been different; I think mostly because I had wanted her to kiss me and I couldn't wait for her to do it again.

Chloe turned back to me, a slight blush coloring her cheeks. "Tell me about your family."

I chuckled and began telling her about Kit, Simon and Tori. I didn't tell her about my life before I came to live with the Bae's and she didn't ask. I told her about the time that Simon gone to visit his Mom is Sweden and had returned with chapped lips and a very light case of frostbite. Apparently he'd arrived there wearing nothing but shorts and a t-shirt in the middle of December.

At the end of the night, Chloe and I were snuggled up on my beach-chair. I was trying to read War and Peace while she was sitting comfortably in my lap with her head on my shoulder, staring out into the water in front of us.

I absentmindedly ran my fingers up and down her forearm with my free hand when suddenly she pulled that hand up and pointed at a line in the book. "That's beautiful," she murmured softly, her warm breath spreading over the crook of my neck.

I read the line that she had pointed at aloud. "_'Seize the moments of happiness, love and be loved! That is the only reality in the world, all else is folly!'_" I quoted and smiled down at her. I had read the book more times that one could count but never before had that specific line caught my attention before. But now, suddenly, I thought that it might be a new favorite.

She closed her eyes and snuggled her head further into my neck. "Read me your favorite piece from the book, would you?"

I nodded and flipped over to the right page. My voice was low when I spoke. "_'_ _Three days later the little princess was buried, and Prince Andrew went up the steps to where the coffin stood, to give her the farewell kiss. And there in the coffin was the same face, though with closed eyes. "Ah, what have you done to me?" it still seemed to say, and Prince Andrew felt that something gave way in his soul and that he was guilty of a sin he could neither remedy nor forget.'_"

"That's sad," she mumbled tiredly.

"It is," I agreed.

"'m sorry," she whispered and pressed a sloppy kiss against my cheeks before slumping back against my shoulder.

Before I knew it we were both asleep, her father watching us from the kitchen window with a small smile on his face.

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**A/N: So what did you guys think? This was mostly a cute little chapter that I wanted to add in just for fun but I hope you guys 'awww'-ed at least a little bit. **

**Thank you for all of your previous reviews and if you have the time and have some critique, thoughts or comments on the chapter feel free to leave 'em :)**

**_/Annabel_**


	11. Chapter 11: The Helping Tori

**A/N: Hi, I just posted the last chapter yesterday and I wrote this one just for kicks. I wasn't really planning on posting it but I think it will give you a better sense of Tori – don't worry it has some Chlerek, too!**

**P.S. I loved all of your reviews, so kind and "awww"-in it made me glad to have posted the chapter even though I was hesitant at first!**

**Playlist:**

**Wish You Were Here – Avril Lavigne (I hope that you guys get what I mean with that song)**

**Chapter 11**

_**Tori**_

…

So, okay, I was worried.

Derek had been gone all night and he wasn't answering his cell. I was never a person that worried about anyone but me… and one time a stray puppy that I found at the beach. But Dad hadn't let me keep him because of Simon and his stupid _allergies_. But suddenly I felt myself worrying about the well being of Derek.

I had asked him to take Chloe out because, well, I knew that she would say yes. It was so obvious that she liked him and that he liked her, too. But I also knew Derek and _Derek_ was _not_ smooth enough to get a girl to sleep with him on the first date – nor would he even want to.

I had tried calling Chloe but so far no one was picking up. I figured that I'd try one last time before I gave up and headed over there.

Luckily, there was an answer. "Hello?" A slightly groggy voice answered.

"Peter?" I asked, clutching the phone to my ear. "This is Tori. Why are you answering Chloe's phone?"

I could hear a long yawn and felt guilty for probably waking him up. "She left it at home," Peter told me.

"Where did she go?" I pressed anxiously. If they were both missing that would be even worse.

"Hold on a sec," I was told and then I could hear some movement on the other end. "Umm, she's still on the beach with… _volunteer guy_." He said.

I breathed out a sigh of relief, a small smirk creeping up my lips knowing that I just found Derek a new nickname. "Are they awake?"

There was a brief pause. "Uh, no I don't think so… but there all snuggled up together. _Gross!_"

I let out a small laugh. "I totally agree with you on that, pal. Well, please tell Chloe to call me tomorrow, can you do that?"

"Sure, sure," Peter said tiredly and hung up the phone, probably heading back to bed.

I looked over at the time. It was almost eleven; I should probably be heading to bed too. And now I could sleep without the wretched feeling of worry ruining my precious beauty sleep.

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I was going over to see Chloe. She hadn't called me but I had a feeling that Peter had been too tired to even remember me calling the other night. I knew that Derek had a shift with the aquarium that day so I figured I'd head over and see what she was doing. To be honest, I was feeling a little bit lonely. At first, I had mostly tried to befriend Chloe because of Derek. He wanted her (even though he wouldn't admit it) and I wanted to help him. But I think that I'd forgotten how nice it was to have a friend because I felt myself actually _liking _having someone to talk to again.

Before the whole _incident _(which I now call it) had happened, Liz Delaney, Annie Adams and Rebecca Millers had been my best friends. I had always been closest to Liz; everyone knew that, so I had thought that she would have supported my decision of going to MIT. But no, she had launched right into a speech of friendship, trust and loyalty about how I was lacking in all of them. Liz wasn't a bad person; I just think that she was hurt that chose not to go with her.

We had talked about going to Columbia University for years. And even though I was disappointing Annie and Rebecca, too; we weren't as close of friends. They might be ignoring me and kicking me out of their clique, thus by wrecking my social status, but they didn't hate me the way Liz did. _I _had burnt that bridge.

And that was why when I saw her standing with Liam, chatting with him like he was just any other person and not a complete _creep_, I didn't go over there. After all; we were not friends anymore.

But as I turned around and continued walking down the stone sidewalk I couldn't help the gut wrenching feeling that came over me telling me that I should've stepped in.

Later on, I was standing outside of Chloe's knocking on it while trying to look as relaxed and casual as possible. The truth was that my mind was still reeling with Liz Delaney. She was the sweetest most innocent girl I knew, Chloe included. Nothing good could come from her hanging out with Liam.

When Chloe opened the door there was a big smile on her face. "Hey, Tori," she said cheerfully. "What's up? Derek left if that's who you are looking-"

I cut her off by pulling her out the door, shutting it behind her. "I need your help," I told her.

Chloe searched my face for a moment, and then as her bright smile faded she nodded. "Yeah, o-of course. What do you need?"

"I need you to help me get Liam away from one of my old friends – I don't want her to get hurt." My voice lowered as I continued. "Not after I already hurt her myself."

Thankfully Chloe didn't say anything about my statement all she asked was. "Where is she?"

So I took her hand and dragged her with me to the place where I'd seen them earlier. They weren't that difficult to find, really. They were still standing down by the ice cream stand in town. Liz was smiling and laughing while Liam was just watching her with a predatory stare that sent chills down my spine.

I pointed my finger at them and Chloe's gaze slowly went over to them. "Do you want me to come with you?" She asked.

I forced a small smile that didn't reach my eyes. "Yeah, that would be nice."

So with our hands still linked together we paced over to them. "Liz?" I asked. I knew that she could see me but she refused to even glance in my direction. "Liz, can you please just talk to me?"

Liz looked at Liam apologetically, "This will only take a second."

It didn't even look like Liam cared, his wicked eyes were now fixated on Chloe who stared back at him defiantly. She shot me a small encouraging smile before letting go of my hand. I didn't like leaving Chloe there with Liam but at least I knew that she could take care of herself.

I walked beside Liz for a few minutes before she stopped. "What did you want to talk to me about?" She asked in a short tone.

I wanted to snap something back at her but decided to just tell her what I had come there to say upfront. "Liam is a bad guy."

"I know that," said Liz, her blue eyes wavering from mine.

I frowned. "Then why are you hanging out with him?"

"Like that's _any _of your business," she snapped back at me.

"It's not," I agreed. "And I know that you probably hate me right now but don't take that out on yourself. Liam is a horrible guy and you deserve better."

"Oh, really?" She questioned. "If I'm so special then how come you've already replaced me? And with another blue eyed blonde nonetheless." There was hurt in her eyes. "Well, I'm glad to see that you could find a new BFF under such a short period of time." She mumbled sarcastically.

"You haven't spoken to me for _months!_" I spat. "I've tried to talk to you but _no_. Do you even get how _lonely_ I have been? _Do you?_" I could feel my eyes watering and I tried to blink back the tears. Tori Bae didn't cry. Ever.

She looked down at her shoes, guilty.

"All I did was wanted was to go to a different college than you guys. So that maybe _I _could get the education that I wanted. Does that really make me such a bad person?"

"Liam is waiting for me-" she tried to excuse but I cut her off.

"Does he look that upset to you?" I asked, gesturing Liam trying to creep up on Chloe. "Is that _really _the kind of guy that you want to associate yourself with?"

"No," she retorted in a small voice.

"No? Then leave." I retorted.

"Tori…"

I sighed. "Just go, Liz!"

Without another word she turned around and walked away, I stared after her until she disappeared into the crowd walking through the stores in town. I turned around and began walking back just in time to see a big dark haired guy's fist make contact with Liam's jaw.

I couldn't make out who it was until I heard Chloe scream. "Derek!"

_Oh, SHIT!_

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**A/N: What happened? The next chapter will probably be in Derek's POV. I'm not sure when it'll come up but hopefully it won't be **_**too **_**long. Now, I hope you guys realized that the song was about Tori and Liz's "friendship". **

**Thank you for all your kind reviews, if you have the time to leave one; please do :)**

**/Annabel**


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